Academy schools face spending cuts

The Government is planning to reduce spending on its flagship academy schools programme, it has been claimed.

Sir Bruce Liddington, who heads a leading academy sponsorship charity, said officials had warned the schools' sponsors to "tighten their belts".

In what appeared to be the first indication of planned cuts in education spending, he told the Guardian that new academies would be receiving less cash.

Sir Bruce, director general of Edutrust Academies Charitable Trust (EACT) and a former civil servant in charge of the academy programme, said: "It's anticipated that there will be cuts in the amount of money that goes towards new academies that are opening.

"We're all anticipating, and officials are encouraging us to anticipate, that any academies we open from next year will not be as well funded as the academies opening this year," he said.

The Tories said the Government's targeting of academy cash was an indication that Schools Secretary Ed Balls was not fully signed up to the academies programme.

Shadow schools minister Nick Gibb said: "It's interesting that the first thing Ed Balls reaches for when it comes to cuts is the academy programme.